Episode:I'll See You in Court
"I ll See You in Court" is the tenth episode from the third season of , making it the series 45th episode overall. Originally intended to air on February 19, 1989, this episode remained unaired within the until June 18, 2002 due to its content and the Rakolta Boycott against Fox. Once dubbed as "the " by the producers, this episode has since not only aired, but can be found on volume one of the most outrageous episodes as well as the complete third season DVD set. Synopsis In the famous 'lost episode', Al and Peg learn they have been video taped getting intimate at a sleazy motel. The same thing has also happened to Steve and Marcy. They decide to take the matter to court. Summary On her couch in the Bundy living room, Peggy Bundy is watching Dr. Sally as her children, Kelly and Bud come down the stairs from the second floor. While the commercial air, Kelly, Bud and Peggy discuss Al's wallet and the fact he has taken it into the shower with him after hiding it in his underwear the previous night. Peggy informs the kids that Al does not have an original wallet, but a duplicate with xeroxed money, reasoning that if Al dared to spend money without them, then he deserved to go to jail. Peggy gives money to Bud and Kelly before the two leave as Dr. Sally resumes, this time responding to viewer mail sent in for on air correspondence. Dr. Sally reads a letter from "Peggy Pundy" that her husband, "Sal" has lost interest in their sex lives. Upon reading the letter, Dr. Sally offers suggestions, such as the living room, the kitchen table or even the bathroom which Peggy, revealing she in fact wrote the letter, confirms neither of these have been done. In closing out the correspondence, Dr. Sally urges "Mrs. Pundy" to try this, as she claimed that she had, and that it worked. After seeing this, Peg decides that the best way to rekindle her relationship with Al is to have sex in a different location. Upon Marcy's recommendation, Peg and Al go to the Hop-On-Inn and discover a videotape waiting for them in their room. After watching some of the tape, the Bundys realize that the couple having sex on the video is Steve and Marcy. Although Al is disgusted, the action turns Peggy on and the couple has sex. Peggy and Al return home and show the tape to Steve and Marcy, who are embarrassed by the film, much to the delight of the Bundys. The Rhoades express their dismay that they were secretly recorded, but Steve points out that the Bundys may have been videotaped as well. Marcy and Al are upset by this violation of their privacy and propose physical violence against the owners of the motel. Steve and Peg, on the other hand, want to take action against the Hop-On-Inn and make money from the incident. Peggy convinces Al to sue the motel with her and the Rhoades. Steve, not wanting a lawyer to take any of the million dollars he expects to win from the case, decides to act as one for the two families. The case begins with Steve presenting a lengthy opening statement, during which the stenographer and the judge fall asleep. Next, Steve shows the subpoenaed sex tapes from the motel, despite objections from his wife. After a few hours, the tape runs out and the courtroom applauds Steve and Marcy's romp. Next, Steve shows Peggy and Al's tape, which ends after a few seconds. After the plaintiff rests, the defense lawyer calls Marcy, Al, and Peggy to the stand. She asks Marcy a series of embarrassing questions, hoping to prove Marcy knew that the camera was there. Her tactic with the Bundys is to try to prove sexual intercourse did not occur on the videotape. In the end, the Rhoades are awarded $10,000, but the Bundys receive nothing, because the jury does not believe that sex occurred. After everyone exits the courtroom, Al attempts to prove that he can perform when he wants to, and has sex with Peg for hours on the judge's bench, unwittingly while being recorded by the courtroom camera! Background Information Production This episode was written by Jeanne Baruch and Jeanne Romano, both of whom were newcomers to , and was directed by Gerry Cohen. It was taped on January 6, 1989 with an intended air date of February, 1989. However, trouble began when the of the declined many lines of the script. Along with other changes, which totaled fifteen (a typical episode of at the time contained two or three at most), of which thirteen of them were conceded to by the editors and producers (who did not agree with the changes to begin with), Fox censors felt that the shows overall topic, sex, was not something that was (at the time) something vocally and openly discussed on television. In addition, Fox was currently the target of a boycott lead by Terry Rakolta over the content of which aired earlier in the year and the episode's , namely, the length of Al's performance (which prevented the Bundys from getting monetary compensation) was considered an unacceptable revelation for the airwaves. As a result, the episode did not air within the (but did elsewhere in the world throughout 1990) until June 18, 2002, a full thirteen years, five months and twelve days after the episode was taped. Even then, the channel which aired the episode , edited out four lines from the episode's broadcast, effectively causing the episode to still not air in its entity (even though it had throughout the world) until the episode was released on DVD. Bundyology episode transcript pageStason.org pageTelevision Haven pageDVD Verdict review page on most outrageous episodes volume 1 Critical Reception With the episode not airing in the United States until 2002, the contemporary critics of the time did not have ample opportunity to review it. 's review was that the episode was, in fact, not overly racy, even by the standards of the era (which were used to not air the episode), claiming that by 2003 its content was "so sedate as to be comatose." The episodes grade given by Film Freak Central was a C+, which went on to call the episode "quaint" and further warning viewers to "never trust the hype."Film Freak Central review and grade Home Media Releases This episode was released on the Married... with Children The Most Outrageous Episodes Volume 1 DVD on February 4, 2003, as well as the The Complete Third Season DVD set on January 25, 2007TV Shows on DVD page. Recurring Cast/Guest stars *Amanda Bearse as Marcy Rhoades *David Garrison as Steve Rhoades *Lora Zane as Ms. Weigel *Lillian Lehman as Judge *Ken Thorley as Jury Foreman Trivia *This episode was filmed in 1989 and slated to be shown during season 3. But due to the Rakolta Boycott, the producers could not come to an agreement with the network censors and decided to pull the episode rather than change the script. The episode did air worldwide in 1989 but not in the U.S., eventually becoming known as "The Lost Show". The episode was finally shown in the U.S. on the FX network on June 18, 2002, five years after the series ended its original run on FOX and thirteen years after it was filmed. *The song that plays while Steve gives his opening statement is the "Perry Mason" opening theme. *Lillian Lehman, who plays the judge in this episode, has played a judge on numerious show, such as L.A. Law, JAG, The Waynes Bros., Seinfeld and The Closer. Goofs *The clock in the courtroom is not consistent. **When Steven starts his openining statement, its approximately 1:27pm **After Marcy hides her face and Steve starts to talk about his grandfather and uncle, its is now 11:30am **When the Perry Mason theme song plays, the clock is at 3:00pm **When Steve finishes his openeing statement, it is back to 1:27pm **When the baliff puts the tape in, it is 1:30pm and then ends at 4:32pm **After Ms. Weigel cross examines Marcy, Al and Peggy, the clock is stuck at 4:32pm **When the jury foreman announces the verdicts, it is 5:30pm **When Al takes Peggy behind the Judge's podieum, it goes from 5:30pm to 9:35pm *Neither the Rhoades nor the Bundys are sworn in before they take the stand in the courtroom. Nevertheless, the judge reminds Peggy that she is under oath and risks perjury for giving false testimony. Links and References References External Links * *''I'll See You in Court'' on Bundyology *''I'll See You in Court - Transcript'' on albundy.net *''#47 I'll See You in Court'' - MWC Podcast on Horrorphilia Category:Season 3 Category:MWC Episodes